I have exciting news to announce! Our newest dress line, Clarisse, was at the 2015 Grammy Gift Suite Sunday night! TT New York is the exclusive retailer for Clarisse in the WNY area, and the styles featured are available at our Boulevard Mall location!   Stop in and snag a red carpet dress to rock at your high school prom or next formal event! Happy shopping, xoxo.

Welcome to prom 2015! Looking for that perfect gown is  fun and exciting, and it is hard not to fall in love with every single dress we have listed under our “Prom Dress” category. So what happens if you live out of town and you see a dress from our website that is THE ONE? Not to worry, I have you covered with this blog! If making the trip to Buffalo to shop through our in-stock collection isn’t going to work for you, you can simply order your gown through our amazing Customer Service Department! Here are the simple and easy steps to take to order a dress off of our website:

Step 1: Once you pick out a gown you would like to order, click the picture to get the dress style number. (Once you click on the picture it will enlarge on your computer screen. Underneath the picture will be a text box with the different sizes and colors the dress comes in, the style number will be 4-5 numbers long and located at the very beginning of the text box)

Step 2: Contact our Customer Service Department either online or by telephone.  

1. Online through our website.  You can locate the “CONTACT” button at the top or bottom of our website which will direct you to our “Contact Form”.  Here is where you will fill out your contact information and then in the “message box”, please state the style number, size and the color of the dress you are interested in ordering. One of our customer service representatives will then contact you to complete your order.

2. By telephone. You can call our toll free number at 1-877-369-3438 weekdays from 10AM to 6PM EST. You will be instructed to leave a voice message with your contact information as well as a convenient time for one of our representatives to contact you back at. (Please note that our customer service department is closed on the weekend. All orders placed over the weekend either by phone or email will be reviewed on Monday and contacted back by order of purchase.) 

Step 3: Within 1-3 business days, a Customer Service Representative will contact you to complete your order. This is where the representative will give you all of the information you desire about the specific gown you are looking to order. They will go over all of the ordering details for you and also answer any questions that you may have! (At the very bottom of the blog, I posted some commonly asked questions with answers for you!) Once you are ready to order, our representative will gather your payment information and process the order.

Before your order is shipped out to you, you will be contacted to let you know it is on its way! Once shipped, the dress should arrive to your home between 3-7 business days depending on your location. All of our shipped dresses are tracked to ensure they arrive to you safely. Any questions or concerns during the ordering process can be answered by your customer service representative.

COMMONLY ASKED QUESTIONS:

Q: After I place my order how long will it take to be shipped out?

A: Once your order has been completed, we will check and see if your dress is currently in stock. If the dress is available it will be shipped out in 1-3 business days. In the event that the size or color you order is temporarily sold out, unavailable, or back-ordered, we will contact you with further information on an estimated ship date. All orders are guaranteed to be in by your wear date.

Q: How long will it take to arrive to my home once it is shipped?

A: Depending on your location, most shipments take 3-7 business days to arrive. If you are an International customer, it may take a longer due to the possibility of it being held up at customs.

Q: Will I have to pay an additional fee if I order online?

A: No, but you may be required to pay a shipping cost depending on your location. (International shoppers will automatically be required to pay shipping due to customs and international shipping)

Q: What method of payments can I use for online purchases?

A: We happily accept Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express. (We do not keep credit card information on file, your payment information will be shredded after purchase) 

Q: How will I know which size to order?

A: All of our different designers have separate sizing charts with the appropriate bust, waist, and hips measurements. We will go off of your measurements and the designers to get you the best fit gown. (Please remember, you must fit the biggest part of your body. For example, if you have bigger hips and a smaller bust, we will order the correct size to fit your hips. Alterations may be required to make smaller areas fit correctly.)

Q: Can I ask for the tracking number so I can keep track of the gown too?

A: Of course! Once you receive confirmation that your dress is about to be shipped out, ask the representative to please pass along the tracking number so you can keep track as well.

Q: Can I order a dress online and pick it up at your Boulevard Mall location?

A: Absolutely! If you choose to have a your order sent to the Boulevard Mall to pick up just let the representative know you would like to direct the shipment to our store location and not your home. Once your dress arrives on location a sales rep will call you. Your dress will then be put into our Paid-in-Full section and you can pick it up at your convenience.

Prom is one of the events that junior and senior girls look forward to most in high school, but it can also get pretty pricey. From the limo, hair and make-up to the actual dress itself, you want to make sure you budget. There are many different and easy ways you can save on your prom dress, so listen up ladies! This blog is dedicated to all the simple ways you can save money on your perfect prom dress this year.

• Join our email blast! By joining our email list you are first to get exclusive coupons and also know about future promotions going on in our store. This isn’t a spam list either, you will only receive about one email per week, usually towards the end of the week. Go onto the home page of our website and down at the bottom there is a link that says “Join Our E’mailing List” Simply fill out your information and you’ll being to receive special offers!
• Bring in your report card! Bringing in your report card will save you $50 off your dress! It doesn’t matter what your grades are, you will still receive the coupon.
• Receive 25% off accessories when you purchase them the same day as your gown. If you want to wait, you’ll be given a coupon that you can come back at another time and get 25% off ONE accessory. We are a one stop shop! We’ve got shoes, earrings, bracelets, necklaces and purses!

TT New York also offers a payment plan for customers who need some time to pay off their purchase. You have 30 days to pay off your dress and your payments can be as small as $25, there is no minimum requirement! Your dress will still be tracked through our event tracking even though you are making payment, so don’t worry!

It is always fun to get dolled up with fierce makeup when you are attending an event or just going out with the girls, but what’s the trickiest part to make perfect? Your lipstick. Sure it looks amazing when you walk out of the house after the first application, but after an hour of talking, eating and drinking you may look in the mirror and realize you’re lipstick is no longer there. How can you assure that your lipstick will stay put all night long? Follow these 3 tricks that I’ve discovered over the year to help my lips stay luscious all night!

Don’t be flaky: If your lips are dry and chapped, you will never get an even application of lipstick. Exfoliate your lips by brushing them with a wet toothbrush or a lip scrub. After you exfoliate, moisturize your lips quickly after to hydrate them. Having even and smooth lips will ensure an even coat all night.

Layers on layers: To make your lipstick last longer, apply a stain first and then line the lips with lip liner (the lip liner will help reinforce the color), then finish off the process with your lip stick. Matte lips last the longest but if your choosing a hydrating gloss or top coat of gloss, make sure to press the color onto your lips before applying the last coat.

Watch what you eat: Be careful how you eat and drink. Avoid putting both your top and lower lip on the cup, and don’t eat with your lips. Bring the utensils into your mouth and chew with your teeth, it helps to avoid smudging your lips. I also try to drink through a straw as much as possible, and don’t pat your lips after eating!

Always be prepared: Worst case scenario, bring your lipstick with you for quick touch ups in the bathroom!

I feel like guys often question why women carry around such big purses, and honestly it’s because I am always prepared for anything. From a hair emergency to a stain on my clothes emergency, my purse holds everything I need to get through any situation. You can find most of these products with any drug store for very cheap and they are small enough to store away without taking up too much room in your purse! Here are just a few items that I always carry around with me for precaution. You can never be too prepared! Xoxo

1. Bobby pins, ponytails & headbands: for when you are having a really bad hair day and you just need to do something with your hair.
2. Dry shampoo: you can buy a little bottle of dry shampoo at Walmart and I always have one in my car. If you wake up in a rush and don’t have time to shower, dry shampoo your roots and then brush your hair and wah-la!
3. Mini perfume bottle: I love smelling good all the time. I store a small bottle of perfume in my purse for those days where I need a little refreshment.
4. Gum: bad breath is not a good thing, especially if you had a lunch filled with onions or other stinky foods. Throw a pack of gum in that bag and you’ll never have to worry about bad breath!
5. Feminine products: Ladies…. always be ready for the worst case scenario. The worst thing that can happen is being out in public when your “monthly friend” decided to pay you an unexpected visit. Any drug store carries small boxes of tampons and pads that you can easily hide away in your purse. Better safe than sorry!
6. Advil or Tylenol: No one likes going around all day with a headache and no medicine. Carry around a small bottle of aspirin for when a headache randomly strikes.
7. Wet wipes: From wiping your makeup off your face after a long night out to needing them to clean off your hands, wet wipes are a life savor.
8. Tide to go pen: This little pen will be your savior when you accidentally drop some food on your pants or shirt. Don’t panic, just use the tide pen to remove the stain!

I think I have truly found the Holy Grail of discount designer products. WARNING: you may experience an empty back account after reading this blog. Neiman Marcus has a website called Last Call that has the best and cheapest collection of designer appeal, accessories, fragrances and so much more for both men and women! I did a lot of my Christmas shopping off Last Call and then I could use the money I saved for other gifts! If you have enough self will to not purchase the entire website for yourself, then I highly recommend looking through Last Calls’s collection! Click on the picture to be taken to Last Call and experience a whole new way to shop and save on designer items!

Last Call has all of the best designers on there. Here are only a select few out of the hundreds of designers on the website:

• BCBGMAXAZRIA
• Diane von Furstenberg
• Free People
• French Connection
• Alexander Wang
• Rachel Zoe
• McQ Alexander McQueen
• Betsey Johnson
• Michael Kors
• Neiman Marcus
• Marc Jacobs
• Giorgio Armani

And there are also so many different categories to choose from:

• Men’s & Woman’s appeal
• Handbags
• Jewelry
• Watches
• Shoes
• Accessories
• Scarves, Hats & Gloves
• Gifts & Fragrance
• Kids
• Clearance

It doesn’t matter that I’ve lived in Buffalo my entire life, I am still never fully prepared for the snow and cold temperatures. After the surprise snow storm we had last month, everyone should be on their toes for any crazy weather we may be having this winter. The snow is finally coming back again and there are some tricks that I’ve come across that really help me during the winter months. Read and remember these tricks, you’ll thank me later xoxo.

1. Fog-proof your windshield. Put a layer on shaving cream on the inside of your windows and wipe it off. Shaving cream has a lot of the same ingredients that commercial defoggers have, and it leaves a layer on after you wipe it off to help keep the windows fog-proof!
2. The sock box. Keep a pair of socks in your glove compartment. No, this is not because your mother will worry about you having cold feet. It turns out that putting on some nice wool socks over your shoes will help give you much better traction in case you have to push you car over ice, or if you need to walk i the snow and ice for some reason.
3. Rear wheel fix. If you are unlucky enough to have rear wheel drive in a snowy, icy area: throw weights in the trunk for extra weight. It will help a bit with the traction to have weight directly over the drive wheels.
4. Natural defrost. Park facing east in the winter, that way when the sun rises it will naturally defrost your windshield and you (hopefully) won’t be stuck scraping it in the cold.
5. Gift card stash. Throw a couple gift cards in your car to your favorite local places or a Tim Hortons. That way, if you ever need a quick gift you have one handy! Get stuck and a need help? Grab a gift card and give it to your savior! Get stuck in the snow and have no money? Use a gift card to walk and get some food while you wait for help.
6. Windshield wiper cover. Remember those socks I mentioned earlier? You could use that pair or a second pair to cover your windshield wipers at night to keep the snow off of them. Raise the wipers off of the windshield and over them up for an easier deicing in the morning.
7. Defensive Driving. Of course there’s nothing more important than actually making it to your destination in one piece. Accelerate slowly, give yourself enough room to stop in time in case of ice. Don’t rush into a green light if the side roads haven’t stopped yet- they might slide out! Don’t floor it out for a ditch and get yourself more stuck by digging holes with your tires. Don’t tailgate! Don’t slam on the breaks if you start to swerve- adjust slowly, and hopefully you gave yourself enough room to regain control if you weren’t tailgating.
8. No ice scraper? If you get in a pinch and find your car windows frozen over but no ice scraper is nearby, you have a couple options- get a spatula if you’re at home, or just use any plastic card in your wallet to get under the ice and scrap away. (Those gift cards you stashed away could come in handy here!)
9. Basic maintenance. There are a few things you definitely need to check on your car as winter approaches. 1) Your tires. Make sure they aren’t smooth so they can actually grip the road in tricky conditions. They’re the only thing between you and the road. 2) Wiper blades. If they don’t work now, they won’t work in the snow. 3) Batteries. The cold makes batteries less effective, so if yours is on the verge of dying now, it will probably fail at some point in the winter. 4) Restock windshield wiper fluid.
10. Get unstuck. Keep a bag of kitty litter or salt in your trunk at all times. That way if you find yourself stuck with spinning tires in the snow, just throw down some litter or sale and it should help you get traction to get you going again. Alternatively, if you forget to do this, take out a floor mat and use that under the spinning tire. (The litter also doubles as a weight for you rear-wheel-drive folks) 
11. Prevent fog at all. If you don’t want to put stuff on your windshield, there are steps you can take to simply reduce the moisture in your car to prevent fog in the first place. You could keep those silicone gel absorbers that come with new products sometimes and put them in your car. You could fill a stocking with kitty litter which absorbs water and keep that in your car overnight. Or before you turn your car off each night, right before you arrive at your house, open the windows and let cold air in. That way the moisture you breath in your car will be reset with dryer winter air. Also, the AC is one of the best defoggers around. The compressor takes the humidity out of the air.
12. Headlight protection. You need your headlights in the winter. So, in order to keep snow from sticking to them and covering them up, rub car wax (normally reserved for the body) on them. It will keep snow and water from sticking to them for weeks!
13. Deice key holes. Just put some hand sanitizer on your key as your try to use it to unlock your car. The alcohol in the hand sanitzer will melt the ice and shortly allow you to unlock your car. Sometimes putting WD-40 in the keyhole before the winter will keep any ice from forming in there in the first place.
14. Keep doors unfrozen. Cooking spray in the cracks of your doors and on the rubber will prevent them from freezing shut at night. Water that melts during the day runs in between your doors and freezes, but cooking spray keeps the water from resting in the cracks in the first place.

One of the best things about the holiday season is that there are so many ways to make a difference and give back. From volunteering at food drives to donating canned goods or toys, you can always find a way to help! TT New York is giving back this year by collecting toy donations to give to Woman & Children’s Hospital of Buffalo. We chose Woman & Children’s to help parents who don’t have enough money to get their children Christmas gifts this year. Nothing is more heartwarming than knowing you made a child’s Christmas by simply donating a toy. A donation bin is inside our Boulevard Mall location where anyone can donate brand new toys (unwrapped please) for boys and girls of all ages. When you donate, you will receive a $25 gift certificate to TT New York towards your next dress purchase. You will also sign a red gift to be displayed on our glass wall behind our counter so everyone can see that you donated!

Help TT New York make a difference to children in need this holiday season! We will be collecting toys now through December 21st and make the donation on December 22nd. Even if it is one gift, you are helping to make one child’s wish come true.

Going wedding dress shopping can be stressful and exhausting…. I mean you are searching for your dream gown after all. It is hard not to get overwhelmed between all of the planning on top of finding “the gown” but there is no need to go bridezilla! There are three simple tips that you can follow to make your shopping experience quick and stress free! Make this time memorable, not a horrible experience. Keep calm and find the gown, xoxo.

Don’t knock it ’til you try it

Being women, we all have a vision of our ”perfect wedding gown” before we are even engaged, but realistically how are you positive it will look good on you? Maybe you love the idea of a form fitting gown, but have you actually tried one on to make sure you love the fit? Absolutely hate empire waist? Don’t knock it ’til you try it! You might be surprised with what you end up with ladies. You need to keep an open mind while shopping and not reject dresses without actually trying it on.

Find the kindest cut for your figure 

Before you start dress shopping, make sure you have an idea of what works for your body type. A dress that may look good on a curvier girl might not flatter a slimmer girl. There is the perfect silhouette for each body type, again you just need to try on different styles to figure out which one works for you! Most bridal consultants are very helpful when it comes down to determining which style is the most figure flattering. The staff is there to help, feel free to ask them for their expertise!

Bring a trusted advisor

Yes it is fun to bring a whole load of your friends shopping with you, but it can also get extremely overwhelming with so many different opinions weighing in. The fact is, your best friend may have a completely different taste than you do when it comes to fashion. Don’t let her opinion sway yours. Sometimes only bringing people who’s opinion you value is the easiest route. For example, I know my sister would never let leave the house looking bad, I value what she has to say and she would 100% be someone I would take wedding dress shopping! You don’t need to invite you entire family, just the important people.

I was born and raised in Buffalo and I can truly say that I love everything about living here. We may not be giant  like New York City, but in my eyes Buffalo is perfect in every single way. From the waterfront smelling like Cheerios to now housing the worlds largest 6 pack of Labatt Blue, how could you not be completely in love with this city? I am going to share some of the best things about Buffalo and why I am proud to say I am a Buffalonian. xoxo

1. The food. While every city has their own special foods, Buffalo to me has the best. No matter where you go you will never find better chicken wings… seriously go and try to find ones better than Duff’s or Anchor Bar. There are so many locally owned restaurants with amazing food that you won’t find anywhere else. If I ever moved away, I would miss breakfast at Lake Effect Diner, lunch at Teds for a delicious hot dog, a midnight snack at Mighty Taco and you can’t forget about the Loganberry.
2. It’s the perfect size. Our city isn’t an overwhelming size, which is the great part about it. You can get from the city to anywhere in a matter of 15-20 minutes (and that’s if you’re following the speed limit, which no one in Buffalo does anyways) I also love that you can go anywhere and run into someone you know, there is always a familiar face in the crowd no matter where you are.
3. The cultural diversity is amazing. No matter if your Polish, Italian, Irish or any other nationality, there is always one day out of the year where the city turns into a huge celebration of that nationality. From Dyngus Day, Italian Fest, Greek Fest, Juneteenth Festival, the St. Patrick’s Day Parade and so many more fun traditions that happen in Buffalo.
4. The sports. We may have the worst teams in the league, but we also have the most loyal fans. I mean what other fans say their football team is going to the Superbowl when in reality every year we end up at the bottom of the roster!? Our tailgates are legendary fully equipped with cookouts, lots of drinking and lots of harassing the other team. From the Bills, Sabres, Bandits and Bisons… “No one circles the wagon like Buffalo fans!”
5. It’s bike friendly. Minus the fact that most people have cars, Buffalo is remarkably easy to get around on a bike. There are over 300 bicycle parking locations installed throughout the city and also through GO Bike Buffalo there are Safe Routes to School program that gives parents and children the resources to safely get to school on their bikes. If you’ve never been on a bike ride through Delaware Park and over near the Buffalo Zoo, then take time out of your day to do so soon.
6. The architecture. Driving through the city you will see so many beautiful buildings, it is one of my favorite things about living here. City Hall is Buffalo’s second tallest skyline and my personal favorite due to the beautiful detail and also Niagara Square being in front. The HH Richardson complex is a mammoth red building at the edge of Buffalo State College and another remarkable building in the city. There is just always something to look at and be amazed by. From schools, churches to office buildings, they are all breath taking.
7. Four season climate. Everyone may complain about the climate change in Buffalo but at least be thankful we don’t get tornado’s or hurricanes! No matter what season it is, there is always something to do so you’ll never be bored. Holiday Valley to ski or snowboard in the winter, Harbor Fest and Darien Lake during the summer for concerts, and so many more fun activities! Yes the cold does stink, but as Buffalo natives the snow doesn’t stop us from making the most of the winter!
8. Abundant green spaces. Complementing the many buildings and roadways, Buffalo’s parks are easily accessible and beautiful to walk through. I love walking through Delaware Park on nice summer day, or near the Albright Knox Art Gallery. It is the perfect place to go walk your dog or take your kids to for an afternoon out.
9. It’s on the up-and-up. The people who live here are passionate and are determined to keep the city growing and making it more beautiful. Growing efforts are already in motion to make this city a better place with movements such as Clean Air Coalition, Buffalo First, GO Bike Buffalo and the Silo City. Not to mention so many of the local business leaders who are collaborating to work towards a more sustainable economy.